Three Manchester United stars’ reactions to Ruben Amorim show why fans at Old Trafford can believe again.

Manchester United’s early season problems have been forgotten thanks to Ruben Amorim, who has only been in charge for three games. He has also shown signs of a better future.

United has two wins and a tie under their new Portuguese coach. With this win, they moved into the top half of the table and kept up their odd quest for a Champions League spot. Every game under Amorim shows how much better United’s players are getting. This makes it even more strange that the club’s leaders waited so long to fire Erik ten Hag.

Marcus Rashford’s faith has been restored after scoring two goals, and Joshua Zirkzee finally looks like a Manchester United player after scoring two goals and setting up another. Amad, on the other hand, has made himself impossible to drop by working hard all game and setting up two goals.

United’s comeback will be put to the test in bigger games yet. On Wednesday, when they play second-placed Arsenal, that test will really show how far they have come in three weeks under Amorim. But it’s clear that United is making progress, and they will only get better in the coming weeks and months thanks to a coach who has a clear theory and idea of how the team should play.

For United, this was the first of nine games in December. They also played at Arsenal and Manchester City in the Premier League and at Tottenham in the League Cup quarterfinals. In light of this, and in line with his stated strategy of rotating players so they can get used to his new style and methods, Amorim made six changes to the team that beat Bodo/Glimt 3-2.

Within two minutes, United’s first attack began. Right wing back Diogo Dalot sent a nice ball into the six-yard box, but neither Rashford nor Zirkzee were ready to receive it. It set the tone for a frustrating first half for United, and Amorim couldn’t hide his disappointment that his team didn’t follow his orders and game plan right away.

Early on, Everton had a few chances. Jesper Lindstrom shot straight at Andre Onana, and Beto hit the side netting with an angle shot. But United scored the first goal in the 34th minute, with a well-executed move that came straight from practice, though the goal was definitely helped by luck.

When Bruno Fernandes took a corner, he found Rashford hiding in the penalty area without being seen. Rashford took the ball on the half-volley and steered it towards the goal. Jarrad Branthwaite took a big deflection off the ball, which gave Jordan Pickford no chance.

Seven minutes later, United made it two goals to one. This time, the goal wasn’t a fluke; it was just credit for pressing and getting back the ball high up the pitch, which is one of Amorim’s main ideas. When Pickford passed the ball to Branthwaite, he hesitated, and Amad quickly took him off the ball. This let Fernandes pick up the loose ball and cross it for Zirkzee, who scored with his left foot to make it 2-0.

Within 30 seconds of the restart, Rahsford made it 3-0. Zirkzee turned quickly and played a beautiful pass to Amad, who then found Rashford, whose shot was too strong for Pickford. Amad’s persistence led to the fourth goal. This time, he took advantage of James Tarkowski’s lack of focus to steal the ball and pass it to Zirkzee, who easily side-footed it in for his second goal of the game.